Edmonton recreation centres criticized for fast food sales

Stephan Rouget, 5, eats an ice cream cone from Dairy Queen at the Terwillegar Community Recreation Centre, while out with mom Julia and sisters Amelie, 1, and Sophia, 8.

Photograph by: Greg Southam
, Edmonton Journal

EDMONTON - Julia Rouget sits with her kids at a table overlooking the busy pool at Terwillegar Community Recreation Centre. Nine-year-old Sophia and five-year-old Stephan are clearly enjoying their chocolate-dipped, soft vanilla ice cream cones from the Dairy Queen/Orange Julius behind them — a rare treat, says their mom, after Sophia’s swimming lesson.

Still, “(having fast food here) doesn’t make any sense, right ... because most people come here for health reasons,” Rouget, with 17-month-old Amelie on her lap, says laughing.

She notes she’s not the only mom who has to fight with kids who emerge thirsty and hungry after suppertime swimming lessons to find the seductive neon glow of the DQ sign staring them in the face.

Rouget doesn’t think unhealthy fast foods should be banned from rec centres — “I think there has to be a balance” — but she is bothered by its location. And there should be more, healthier foods to choose from, she says.

She won’t get any argument from Dana Olstad, a registered dietitian working on her PhD at the University of Alberta’s Department of Agricultural, Food and Nutritional Science.

The nutrition researcher surveyed 151 or about 10 per cent of the multiplex recreational facilities in the province and found 80 per cent of the food available from concessions and vending machines is unhealthy. Only six per cent are implementing the Alberta Nutritional Guidelines for Children and Youth introduced in 2008 for voluntary use by schools, child care facilities and recreation facilities.

“We know that rec facilities are doing a great job promoting active living, but just from going into rec centres, you notice that most of the foods are unhealthy,” Olstad says.

Even the centres that have implemented the guidelines focus on increasing the availability of healthier items rather than reducing the availability of unhealthy foods, she notes, “because it doesn’t really have a big financial impact if they just add items as opposed to taking away fries, which is half of their business, in a lot of cases.

“That is really a big issue because if you sit a child down and say you can have carrots or a chocolate bar, they’re going to pick the chocolate bar,” she explains, and kids buy half of the food sold at rec centres.

These facilities need to be more active in adopting provincial guidelines, and if they don’t, the province should make them mandatory, Olstad says. Even better, they should stop offering unhealthy foods, following the lead of many schools.

Talking to people at the Terwillegar Centre last week, however, shows most don’t think government should ban unhealthy food from rec centres, that it should remain an individual choice, but there should be more healthier options.

“It’s a free country ... if you don’t want to eat (unhealthy food), don’t eat it,” says 15-year-old Rishi Durupala, finishing a grilled BLT sandwich during a break from playing basketball.

His friend Sai Avuthu, also 15, thinks all the food at the rec centre is unhealthy. If they did away with it, he wouldn’t miss it, he says, but “you should never have fast food every day anyway, it’s too bad.”

Seventeen-year-old Andrew Park eating an ice cream treat and drinking a cola after playing badminton with friend Josh Oh, 17, says it’s ironic to find fast food in a place people come to exercise, but people should still have a choice.

“The people who work out know they shouldn’t be eating fast food,” Park says.

Oh has just finished a chili cheese dog and is spooning down an ice cream treat.

“I didn’t have lunch today,” he explains. “Yeah, I guess it’s bad for you, but this DQ doesn’t have burgers and fries which are a lot worse.”

Daren Dwernychuk, a City of Edmonton recreation centre manager, explains natural gas and/or exhaust venting systems in leased spaces were purposely left out of the Terwillegar building design to eliminate deep fried and grill fried foods.

Mom Jo Kapeluck, sitting at a nearby table with 12-year-old son Luke doing homework while they wait for little brother Eric to finish his swimming lesson, thinks it’s a matter of making good choices most of the time.

Suzie Marano, whose son Zach also plays hockey, says if an arena has french fries and hamburgers and other fried foods, players usually ask their parents to hunt up less greasy fare for them.

“Parents, supported by coaches, and I think peer pressure too, plays a big role in them eating healthy,” she notes.

Marano has worked with athletes and with people trying to achieve weight loss, and her opinion is if unhealthy foods are eliminated from the menu there isn’t that desire for kids, families or grandparents to choose it.

“And the excuse that vendors say it will screw up their bottom line (not to be able to sell unhealthy food) is not supported by any evidence whatsoever,” she says.

“Childhood obesity is increasing at an alarming rate, and if there isn’t something to force parents to start making healthy choices, it’s never going to end, it’s never going to change,” Marano says.

We encourage all readers to share their views on our articles and blog posts. We are committed to maintaining a lively but civil forum for discussion, so we ask you to avoid personal attacks, and please keep your comments relevant and respectful. If you encounter a comment that is abusive, click the "X" in the upper right corner of the comment box to report spam or abuse. We are using Facebook commenting. Visit our FAQ page for more information.